Unspoken Bond
by galaxykitten
Summary: Nighttime at Kame House, and a certain little telepath can't sleep. Oneshot, Tien/Chiaotzu. Because it had to be done!


**_Warning_**: This fic contains shounen-ai and shouta (depending on how you view Chiaotzu's age). If this offends you in any way, simply do not read it. Thank you.

That being said, this is not only my first DBZ fanfic but pretty much my first fanfic ever. So it might be not-so-good. But I did put thought into it. TienxChiaotzu is my absolute favourite couple and I noticed that there really doesn't seem to be any fics of them written in this nature. Probably because I'm the only person out there sick enough to support them as an actual couple. xD But, anyways, I just had to write this. Maybe, just _maybe_, there's some other TenZu fans hiding out there who will enjoy this though. But, more-than-likely, I'll probably just get rude comments on this or none at all. ^_^;

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It was night time at Kame House. The only light for miles came from the stars which illuminated the the sky and glistened upon the the sea surrounding the small island. Inside the little pink house, everyone was tucked away into their beds, ready to fall into dreamland for the night.

Everybody except for Chiaotzu, that is. The small, doll-like boy sat in front of the window of his and Tien's room, gazing pensively upon the ocean. His elbows were rested upon the windowsill, head propped up by the palms of his tiny hands. Tien was sleeping soundly in the bed they shared, an empty spot next to him where Chiaotzu normally slept.

Chiaotzu had tossed and turned for what seemed like hours, but couldn't sleep. There was something on his mind; something that was nagging at him quite often lately. And that's what had brought him here, to the window, staring down at the sea as the stars sparkled upon its surface. Sitting there, alone in his thoughts.

But, it wasn't just these pesky thoughts, or the sleepless nights caused by them; Chiaotzu couldn't seem to concentrate lately either. During training the past few days, he would often find himself spacing out, causing him to slip up at his practices. Even eating proved to be quite difficult due to a peculiar feeling of 'butterflies' in his stomach...

_'What's going on with me?' _Chiaotzu thought to himself. He wasn't sure what to make of these feelings he was having. He didn't know why he was feeling this way or what it meant. All he knew was that one person in particular seemed to be the cause of it all; that man who was sleeping in the bed in the corner behind him. The person who he had come to know as his best friend.

Chiaotzu couldn't quite understand it himself, but the feelings Tien gave him were unlike any other. Every time he was near him or even just thinking of him, his heart would race and he'd feel weak inside. And sleeping by him earlier... it was just too much for him.

_'Why... ?' _Chiaotzu asked himself. _'Why do I feel this way about it him? What does it mean?'_ All these questions - among others - raced through his mind as he sat there. Chiaotzu had always loved Tien more than anyone, but, now, he felt he was beginning to love him in a different way; as more than just his best friend. But, it was all so confusing for him. He didn't know what to think or do about this...

_ 'What should I do... ?' _As he thought about this, the moments passing by, it was getting later and he was growing tired. After all, the past few nights hadn't allowed him much sleep either. His eyelids drooped half-shut as sleep threatened to claim him. It may have succeeded too, had it not been for the sudden interruption from his roommate.

"Chiaotzu? What are you doing up?" Tien asked, his voice piercing through the silence in the room. Chiaotzu turned his startled gaze to his friend, his heart skipping a beat as Tien joined the small telepath in front of the window. "You should be in bed, sleeping." he remarked.

"I-I'm looking at the stars." Chiaotzu said. He was surprised he hadn't sensed Tien sneaking up behind him. Usually, he was very in tune with Tien's actions, but he had caught Chiaotzu off guard this time. Probably because he had been so preoccupied with his thoughts; not to mention, dozing off in the process. "They're really pretty tonight... see?" A tiny yawn escaped his mouth as he pointed to the starry sky.

Tien grinned a bit. "Yes... but, aren't you tired?" he asked, although he could tell the obvious answer was 'yes'.

"N-nope! I'm not tired!" Chiaotzu lied, smiling weakly before another yawn, bigger than the last, followed.

Tien chuckled a bit at Chiaotzu's hopeless attempts to convince him that he 'wasn't tired'. The boy could be so stubborn, but it wasn't a bad thing. Infact, it was rather... _'Cute', _Tien secretly thought to himself. Chiaotzu had a lot of little quirks - many only Tien himself knew about - that he had come to find rather charming. They made him only adore his friend even more.

In fact, Tien had come to love Chiaotzu more than anything; even more than he loved martial arts. For so long now, he had loved Chiaotzu in a way he knew went beyond friendship. He knew it was wrong to have such feelings for his seemingly young friend, but as much as he tried to fight it, he just couldn't help himself. His feelings were there to stay and he had come to accept that.

Suddenly, Chiaotzu was lifted up from behind by two strong arms. Chiaotzu blushed at this, caught off guard for the second time that night. "Let's get some sleep now," Tien said, as he propped his small friend up on one arm. "You don't want to be tired during training tomorrow, do you?"

"B-but, Tien! I don't wanna go to bed yet," Chiaotzu protested, unwilling to join Tien back to bed. He knew he would have a difficult time handling that right now.

Tien blinked. "Why not?" he questioned, his curiosity now piqued. He had taken notice of Chiaotzu's odd behaviour as of late and it was beginning to concern him.

Chiaotzu looked away, desperately trying to hide the fact that he was blushing. He swallowed and spoke up nervously. "I just want to look at the stars..." he answered softly.

"Hmmn..." Tien could tell that something wasn't right and he intended to find out what. It was unlike Chiaotzu to keep things from him. He didn't like it. "Alright then, you win," he spoke in a lighthearted tone. "We can sit here and look at the stars for a while. But after that, it's bed time. Okay?"

"Uhh..." Chiaotzu gulped. _'We'_? Did Tien mean he was going to sit here with him? He became even more nervous. "Okay, Tien..." he said meekly. It wasn't that he didn't want to be with Tien; he just didn't know how to deal with these strange feelings that he brought about in him. They had been eating away at him enough as it were, but with Tien around, they intensified immensely. But, he wasn't about to push his best friend away...

"Good," Tien said with a smile and gave Chiaotzu a pat on the head. He sat down in front of the window, shifting the small boy in his arms so that he was sitting on his lap. Chiaotzu looked down at the floor, making no effort to move from his spot as Tien wrapped his arms around him. He had always loved the comfort of being in his arms. Although, this time, Chiaotzu's heart was pounding as Tien pulled him closer...

_'I just don't understand,' _he thought. Of all the countless times him and Tien had shared a hug or he'd been held in Tien's arms, he had never felt the way he did now about it. _'Why does he make me feel this way all of a sudden?'_

His mind wandered off again as he thought about himself and Tien. They had always been the closest of friends; almost like brothers. But that's all it ever it was. However, something was changing now and Chiaotzu knew it. But just _what was_ this feeling he had for him? He couldn't place it.

Meanwhile, Tien was having thoughts of his own. _'Chiaotzu's never had trouble telling me anything before. What could he possibly have to keep from me?'_ he questioned to himself. He wanted to know why Chiaotzu was acting so strange lately. It worried him. He wanted to know what was going on. And he wanted to fix it, whatever it was. After all, he had vowed to always protect Chiaotzu and be there for him.

Chiaotzu turned his head up cautiously to see Tien staring out the window at the stars. He secretly admired his features for a moment as he continued to think to himself. _'He's just so cool... _' Chiaotzu gushed, not entirely aware of what he was thinking at this point. His cheeks became warm as he found himself blushing again.

"Chiaotzu," Tien spoke, having sensed his eyes gazing upon him. He turned his gaze down to the small one sitting on his lap.

"Y-yes, Tien?" Chiaotzu responded, snapping out of his thoughts, but blushing deeper than before.

Tien opened his mouth to speak, but took notice of the redder-than-usual appearance of his friend's cheeks. _'Hmmn... perhaps Chiaotzu is coming down with something,' _he thought and concluded that that might explain Chiaotzu's unusual behaviour as well. _'Of course. That must be it. Poor Chiaotzu... he must not feel well.'_

"Are you feeling alright?" Tien asked, concern apparent in his voice.

"H-huh? What do you mean, Tien?" Chiaotzu asked nervously, looking away. "I feel fine, really." He tried to steady his voice and sound calmer.

Tien tilted Chiaotzu's head upwards so he could get a look at his face again. "Your cheeks look a bit flushed," Tien remarked. "Are you sure you're not coming down with a cold? You didn't take off your hat while I wasn't around, did you?"

"T-Tien!" Chiaotzu exclaimed, blushing madly at this point. But Tien didn't give him much of a chance to say anything further as he lifted the boy up off his lap and turned him around to face him, all in one swift motion. He held Chiaotzu steadily in his arms as he brought him in closer and leaned in forward so that their foreheads were touching.

Chiaotzu was speechless. What in the world was Tien doing? He felt his cheeks grow hotter than ever as a mixture of emotions overcame him. He didn't budge, feeling frozen there as Tien stared into his eyes with his own three.

"Hmmn..." Tien mumbled. "You do feel a bit warm." It now occurred to Chiaotzu that he was checking his temperature. However, Tien stayed like that, his forehead pressed against the small telepath's, savoring every second of the closeness they were sharing. _'He looks so cute right now,' _he thought to himself. _'If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was blushing...' _

"Uhh... Tien?" Chiaotzu spoke up in that soft, child-like voice of his that Tien had always found so adorable. But he didn't respond; he was too caught up in his thoughts.

_'That couldn't be it... could it?'_ Tien thought of all the times he had found himself fighting back the urge to kiss Chiaotzu. Right now was another one of those times. It would have been so easy for him to do it with the way their foreheads were touching right now; faces so close to each other, mouths only inches apart...

But, as always, he resisted. As he stared into Chiaotzu's large, innocent eyes, he was reminded of how pure the boy was. Tien knew that, no matter how old Chiaotzu was in years, he still remained a 'child' physically and mentally. It would have been "wrong" to do such a thing to him. Tien would never want to do anything that could potentially harm Chiaotzu or ruin their friendship...

Chiaotzu stayed there, motionless, feeling as though his heart could pound out of his chest at any moment. Although only several minutes had passed, to him, it had felt like an eternity. _'Why is Tien staring at me like that...?' _he wondered, feeling anxious along with the mixture of other emotions he was having right now.

However, one feeling in particular was taking dominance over the others; one that had become familiar to Chiaotzu but that he still did not quite understand. But, the oddest thing was, as he continued to look at Tien's face, he found himself wondering what it would be like to kiss him. He imagined how nice it would be to feel his warm lips against his own...

"I-I'm sorry, Chiaotzu," Tien spoke up at last, putting Chiaotzu down gently on the floor in front of him. Chiaotzu snapped out of his little daydream as he felt their foreheads separate from one another, instantly missing the warmth of being close to Tien. "Why don't we go and get some rest now?" Tien suggested, his voice calm and quiet.

"Alright, Tien," Chiaotzu agreed, making no hesitations this time. "I'm getting pretty sleepy anyways," he remarked, forcing a small chuckle. There was a slight awkwardness between them after the little moment they had just shared seconds before. Their emotions for each were running strong now.

Chiaotzu toddled over to their bed, climbed in, and got situated under the blankets. Tien followed after shortly, joining him under the covers. He shut his eyes, all three of them, and tried to take his mind off of everything. He was about to doze off when, suddenly, he felt something tugging at the sleeve of his pajamas.

"Tien," he heard that adorable voice whispering to him.

Tien turned over to face the small boy next to him. "Yeah, what is it, Chiao-"

He was interrupted by a pair of small, soft lips meeting his own. Tien's eyes immediately shot wide open from shock. His mind seemed unable to comprehend what was happening; was Chiaotzu really... kissing him? Was this all just a dream? No, it couldn't be. Tien had never felt more alive than he did right now. This was definitely real.

Tien could still hardly believe it nonetheless. He had waited so long for this and now it was finally coming true. His eyes shut now and he allowed his mind to go blank as he focused on savoring every last second of this moment. He wrapped his arms around Chiaotzu's body, pulling him in closer, deepening their kiss.

Chiaotzu himself was up on cloud nine as well. Being in Tien's gentle embrace with his warm lips pressed against his felt more wonderful than anything he'd ever experienced. And it just felt so right. All at once, everything made sense to him now. He now knew what the feelings he had been having meant.

It seemed that, without even realizing it, his feelings for Tien had been growing deeper and deeper over all the years they had spent together. There was no denying it now; Chiaotzu had fallen in love with his best friend. He no longer felt confused nor anxious about it. And not only did he understand his feelings for Tien, but he knew Tien had returned them. Chiaoztu couldn't be happier.

And neither could Tien. He felt his heart melt as two, small arms wrapped around his neck.

"_Chiaotzu," _he called to his new lover, using the telekinesis they shared. "_Chiaotzu, I want you to know... I love you... "_

_ "I know, Tien,"_ Chiaotzu pulled away from him, breaking the kiss they had shared. _"I love you, too."_ He smiled lovingly at Tien. "I'm sleepy now. Let's get some rest," Chiaotzu spoke out loud this time.

"I thought I saw you yawning quite a bit back there," Tien said teasingly.

"Yeah, well... it was all your fault I couldn't get any sleep," Chiaotzu teased back. He stuck his tongue out at Tien playfully.

Tien couldn't help but laugh. "Why are you so adorable?" he asked. Chiaotzu blushed. He never thought he'd hear something like that coming from Tien's mouth. Then again, he never expected any of the things that had happened that night.

"I... uhh..." Chiaotzu was at a loss for words. He felt Tien's finger brush against his lips lightly, silencing him.

"Shhh," Tien whispered before moving in for another kiss. Their lips connected passionately, both of them enjoying the moment. After they parted, Tien pulled Chiaotzu closer to him, holding him tightly, though gently. Chiaotzu sighed happily, feeling safe and warm in his arms. He buried his face into Tien's chest and closed his eyes, ready to get some sleep at long last.

"_Good night, Chiaotzu... my love,"_ Tien told him gently, using their telekinetic bond again. _'I'll always love you."_

_"Me too, Tien... I'll love you... forever..." _Chiaotzu responded, sounding sleepy even when communicating in this manner.

Tien smiled warmly and closed his tired eyes, eager to get some rest himself. The night couldn't have been more perfect; the two of them laying there, snuggled so close to one another, the peaceful sound of the waves crashing gently upon the island's shore, luring them both to sleep. Their bond had blossomed that night into something amazing and beautiful that neither had thought to be possible before. It was something that went deeper than the deepest of friendships while still remaining so pure. The bond they had created together went beyond words.

As the couple lay there, drifting into slumber, feeling happier and more complete than ever, they both knew that they were truly bound together forever.

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And that's all! :D Comments/reviews are loved, constructive criticism is welcome, flames be will laughed at and ignored. :) Thanks for reading! ^_^

Yamcha: Gay!

(Yes, that was a DBZA reference :b)


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